SWAT Team in Standoff With Gang Member Tuesday in Richland

The regional SWAT team was in a one-hour standoff with a dangerous gang member and sex offender in Richland Tuesday over a gun crime about two blocks from Marcus Whitman Elementary and four blocks from Carmichael Middle School.

According to a press release, Ricco Garza is a criminal who had been pursued for months by authorities in Florida and Portland and was finally cornered in a Richland residence by the U.S. Marshalls and the Richland Police Department late Tuesday afternoon. Garza was wanted on a federal firearms violation and for failing to register as a sex offender. Armed with a handgun, Garza refused to exit the Richland home, located on the 400 block of Smith Avenue near two schools and several churches. Because of Garza’s known history of violence and gang affiliations the Tri-City Regional SWAT team was called in on the case. After one hour of negotiations Garza was quietly taken into custody and transported to the Benton County Jail.